Happy Birthday, Clark!!!

Dear Clark,

Happy Birthday!!  One year ago I was very scared when you came into the world.  You were so very tiny and born a month earlier than expected.  You were so small that the nurses would put you inside my tank top, tummy to tummy, with your head resting on my chest.  We would lay an extra blanket on top of me to keep you warm.  You looked like a little koala bear all cozy in my shirt.  Now you are a little bulldozer who loves electrical outlets, rocks, sand and cars.  The last year has gone by so quickly!  Your personality is just starting to shine through and it is so much fun to see what you like.  You absolutely love cars.  We sit in the driver’s seat of my car almost every afternoon and you hold on to the steering wheel and squeal with excitement.  Aunt Kelly gave you a ride-on Lamborghini for your birthday and you are obsessed with honking the horn and making the lights shine.   You also love dogs.  When we see dogs on the morning walk, you get very excited and try to lean out of the stroller to watch them.  If I say “puppy dog”, you get a big smile on your face.

The best part of this month was your first real word.  You have been making sounds for a few months, but now you can say “Dada” very clearly.  It is so cute to hear your little voice and I cannot wait until you say “Mama”.  This month was filled with a lot of milestones.  You have three more teeth – One more on the bottom and two on the top!  In total, you seven teeth!!  Sloane didn’t have any teeth until 16 months so you are really ahead of the game.  We discovered that you love blueberries, cold (roasted) sweet potatoes and quesadillas.  In fact, you love all sorts of finger foods now - Grated cheese, beans, bananas, peaches, grapes and the all-time favorite, cheerios.

We are finally getting on a more regular schedule.  Nights are slowly getting better with only a few wake ups around 2-3am.  You wake up around 5-6am and half of the time you fall back asleep, but half of the time you are ready to start the day.  If you fall back asleep, you get up for the day around 7:30-8am, nap around 10:30am and again at 3:30.   It is really nice having a regular rhythm to our day.  Most mornings are spent at the park.  You eat breakfast in the swings then I push you while Sloane plays.  You love the sand but try to eat it so I rarely let you crawl around since the park is not the cleanest of places.  We have spent a lot of time this summer at the pool and you are happy in the water.   After dinner we usually head to the little park and you crawl EVERYWHERE.  Daddy and I have to keep a close eye on you otherwise you will go down the slide headfirst or try to eat rocks.

You pull yourself up to standing on anything you can grip.  I have a feeling that you will walk soon.  I am really excited to see you on the move but also a little sad that you are already such a big boy.  I love rocking you to sleep because I know that very soon you will be too big to fit in my arms.  I want to enjoy every minute of you being a baby before it is gone.  I just love you and your chubby cheeks so much!

Happy birthday, dude.  Sloane, daddy and I love you so much!!

Xoxox,

Mommy